Even before a fan was banned from Vivint Smart Home Arena for making degrading comments, the NBA veteran had been considering his role and responsibility as a white man in the NBA and in America in 2019.

“… I know I have to do better. So I’m trying to push myself further,” Korver wrote. “I’m trying to ask myself what I should actually do. How can I — as a white man, part of this systemic problem — become part of the solution when it comes to racism in my workplace? In my community? In this country? These are the questions that I’ve been asking myself lately.”

Thank you @KyleKorver for writing bravely about white privilege but especially for calling this out: ‘The person who does and says all the ‘right’ things in public … But in private? Well, they sort of wish that everyone would stop making everything ‘about race’ all the time. https://t.co/mR2vz2G3Mh

The Jazz have had myriad discussions about race and racism, especially in recent weeks.

“We’ve had a lot of conversations in the locker room and at [meals] around that topic,” rookie Grayson Allen said. “It’s awesome for [Korver] to come out with that essay and it’s awesome for me as a young player to be in a locker room where so many players think about important topics and talk about them frequently.”

Korver joined his Jazz teammates Thabo Sefolosha, Ekpe Udoh and Georges Niang for one such conversation with the Players Tribune. You can watch the discussion here: